


Confessions

by orphan_account



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Gen, Sadness, and chat noir, and marinette, im sorry, poor Tikki, tikki doesn't like being stuffed into handbags forcibly
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-08
Updated: 2016-03-19
Packaged: 2018-05-25 10:16:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 3,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6191023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Adrien rejects Marienette, Ladybug rejects Chat Noir, all around sadness. Oh yeah, then Chat Noir and Marienette get trapped in the school bathroom with no way out after an akuma attack, the day after all this happened. Did I mention that?</p><p>"Ladybug felt bad for pushing Chat away, but she had not been in the mood to be romantic right then. She had just had her heart broken by the boy of her dreams- was is so unreasonable to be snappy?"</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Rejected

Marinette shyly walked up to Adrien, her heart fluttering nervously. He looked up at her, from where he was on a park bench.  
“Hmm? Oh, hi Marinette.”  
“Hey.”  
She stared at her feet, and back up. She couldn’t believe Alya had talked her into this, but she guessed it had to happen sometime, and right now was the only time she’d be able to work up the courage to do it. “W-would you like to go w-with me to the movies sometime?”  
He looked at her, surprised. He had always thought of her as a friend, and although he was growing to like her in a more romantic way, he was still committed to his Lady.   
“I’m sorry, I can’t.”  
She nodded slowly, and backed away, before breaking into a run when she got closer to her house. Flopping down on her bed, she sobbed.   
“Marinette?”  
She mumbled something into the pillow about her aching heart, and starting blubbering again.   
“Hey. I’m sorry.” Tikki patted her, bringing out a cookie from inside the bag. Marinette stared up with red eyes, looking at the stale chocolate chip cookie.   
“Ah, no thanks, Tikki.” She forced herself to laugh, and started to lie down again, when she heard the T.V.  
“This just in, another akumized victim has been spotted along the Siene, and he’s terrorizing the people of Paris. Chat Noir is currently trying to fight this creature on his own, and everyone is wondering when Ladybug will show up.”  
Marinette groaned, and transformed into Ladybug, going to aid Chat Noir.

Her heart really hadn’t been in the battle today, and Chat Noir noticed. He’d been working up the courage to say something like this to her for a long time, and he chose today to be the day. Surely, this would cheer her up. He felt bad about his rejection of Marinette, but he was saving his love for one person, and that was his Lady.  
He walked up to her after the battle, his signature grin on.  
“Hello, my Lady. Quite a exciting day, huh?”  
She barely looked up from her yo-yo, which she was stringing her fingers through.  
“You know how to make a cat’s cradle with your yo-yo, bugaboo?”  
“Hmm? Yeah.”   
He leaned close, staring into her bright blue eyes that seemed strangely dulled today. “You okay?”  
“Yeah.”  
“I- I’ve been wanting to ask you something for a while… Ladybug, would you like to come to the the Eiffel Tower with me tonight?”  
She looked up at him, her face suddenly harsh. “No. My transformation is running out, I’ll see you some other time.” She bounded away, leaving him confused and somewhat hurt.   
“Wait- my Lady!” he called, reaching out his hand to her, but she was already gone.  
Ladybug felt bad for pushing Chat away, but she had not been in the mood to be romantic right then. She had just had her heart broken by the boy of her dreams- was is so unreasonable to be snappy?


	2. Trapped

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If Marinette could choose how these past few days could go, the list would certainly not go:
> 
> 1\. Get rejected by Adrien  
> 2\. Make Chat Noir upset  
> 3\. Have an akumized person interrupt your school day  
> 4\. Get trapped in the school bathroom with Chat Noir
> 
> but there wasn't anything she could do about it now.

The next day at school, everyone was talking about the akuma battle the previous night- with the exception of one person, the person who you would least expect to ignore a battle. Alya ran up to Marinette with an excited expression, not noticing the girl’s red eyes and messy hair.   
“So? How’d it go? Did you guys make a plan to go to the movies? When is it? Which movie is it?”  
Marinette looked at her. “He said no.”  
“What? He said no to you?”  
“You don’t need to rub it in.”  
“That’s not what I meant- oh, Marinette, I’m so sorry!” Alya hugged her, patting her on the back. “Hey,” she said, looking Marinette straight in the eyes. “You are coming to my house this afternoon, and we are eating all the chocolate we can until we explode. You understand me?”  
Marinette could only nod, her friend’s promise cheering her up slightly. “Thank you, Alya. I’ve had a long night.”  
“Don’t worry, girl. I swear, I’m going to talk to Nino about this. After all, friends are responsible for each other, huh?”  
Marinette started to tear up, and Alya led her to her seat, handing her a tissue. “It’s okay, Marinette. After all, he clearly isn’t worth it if he’s going to reject you.”

They were halfway through the school day when the akuma attacked. Marinette was sitting in her seat, working on a worksheet halfheartedly, when a loud crash shook the school, and everyone scattered. She realized there was an akuma the second people started screaming, and she ran to the bathroom to transform. When she got there, Chat Noir was rushing out, clearly having just transformed. He caught sight of her and stopped short. “Oh, Marinette, hi. You need to get out of here, the building is weak and the akumaized man is about to get here!”  
She was about to fumble through some excuse in order to get out of his sight and transform when something rumbled and the door caved in, raining debris. She screamed, which would have been a bash to her pride as Ladybug, but wasn’t to Marinette, luckily. She surveyed the door, which had completely collapsed. Every exit was blocked off, and she looked at Chat Noir expectantly. He frowned.   
“I can’t use Cataclysm, the whole building would collapse and people would be hurt.”  
He sighed, looking at her. “You don’t happen to have a magic rock removal system, do you? That would be pawsome.”  
She shook her head, still staring at the door in shock. She couldn’t transform into Ladybug, because then what good would that do, besides making Chat realize who she was? They sat there in an awkward silence, until Chat spoke.

“I was dumped last night.”  
She looked at him, questioning, even though she knew exactly what he meant.  
“Well, not really dumped, we weren’t really together in the first place. But it felt like we were, y’know?”  
“I know,” she responded quietly, staring at the cracked concrete floor.  
He looked at her, stiffening. “What?” she asked, suddenly annoyed.  
“Nothing. You just remind me of someone I know.”  
There was silence, and a moment passed before he talked again.  
“I mean, she was so sweet, and kind, and… she just rejected me,” His voice cracked, and he caught his breath before continuing. “I think… that there was someone else. Someone she was waiting for. She just seemed, I don’t know, really upset.”  
As Chat said this, he thought of himself, suddenly. He had rejected Marinette for that very reason, and she was probably angry at him. Well, not him, Adrien. Who was him. God, pronouns were so confusing!  
He looked at her, frowning. “I’m sorry, you probably don’t want to hear any of this right now. I mean, you barely know me, and I’m just pouring out my feeling to you… I’m sorry.”  
She smiled bitterly. “Don’t worry, I understand. The same thing happened to me yesterday. I thought I.. knew him. Until he just pushed me away. I guess.. I guess it was too much to hope that we were more then friends.”  
She thought of what she had done, as Ladybug. Chat had probably been really upset, and she had been cruel to reject him like that. Still, she had just gotten over Adrien. No, she wasn’t really even over him yet. She still had a crush on him, even when he had shoved her away.  
She blushed, and shook her head. “I’m sorry. I… I…” she choked up, and swallowed hard before continuing. “I guess I was still recovering from that last night, when the akuma attacked. I didn’t get any sleep, and I was really tired when I woke up this morning.”


	3. Tense

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yay, a deep, inner-emotions talk. Just what she needed (not)

A scream brought her back to the reality of their situation, and she stood up. “We have to find a way out of here, Chat.”  
“I guess if Ladybug was here, she and I could find a way. I’m not sure.”  
“That’s all you think of, huh, Chat? Ladybug, Ladybug, Ladybug. Don’t you ever think of anyone else?” Marinette practically yelled that last part, storming off into a stall to fume.  
Chat looked guilty, and he put his head in his hands after she disappeared from view. “I can’t do anything right…” he muttered, and slid his staff in and out like it was a telescope, peering through it. “Welp, this doesn’t do anything at all,” he sighed, and groaned again.

Marinette let Tikki out of her handbag as soon as they were out of sight of Chat. “What do I do?” she whispered urgently. She wanted to cry. She was trapped in a bathroom with Chat, as her civilian self, while an akuma caused havoc outside.  
If she transformed… Chat would know she was Ladybug. He might never speak to her again. She couldn’t risk that.  
“You need to transform, Marinette,” the kwami chirped. “I know I always tell you not to reveal your identity, but this is an emergency. You have to transform!”  
“What if he hates me once he finds out I’m Ladybug?”  
“He won’t, don’t worry. Please.”  
She was just about to relent and transform when a loud crack shook the room, and a huge chunk of plaster celling tumbled down on Marinette, trapping her under it. She winced at the pain, and the scream she had let loose as the crack split the air. She couldn’t get loose, and Tikki hovered over her, shocked.  
“You need to get help,” Marinette whispered to her.  
“I can’t leave you, Marinette!”

Suddenly, she saw Chat’s shadow under the door. “Marinette?” he called, “Are you okay?”  
Tikki yelped and zoomed into Marinette’s purse as Chat stepped into the girl’s room.  
“I’m trapped under a piece of ceiling!” she called, willing her voice not to shake. He ran in, and stopped, staring at her.  
“I have to use Cataclysm.”  
She looked up at him, realizing with a sinking feeling what that meant. If he accidentally touched her, she was dead. If he didn’t, and he got her out of there, he would transform back to his civilian self within five minutes. She gulped, and nodded slowly in consent.  
He hesitated for a moment, and then yelled, “Cataclysm!” A ball of dark energy formed in his hand, swirling and writhing. He slowly touched it to the plaster, and it cracked the chunk of ceiling like it was butter, falling to pieces around Marinette. She breathed a sigh of relief as the energy dissipated, and she was free, unharmed.  
She looked up at him and smiled, slightly sadly. “I guess it’s time for me to find out who you are.”  
“I guess so.”  
She felt something wriggling in her purse, and put her hand down, quietly shushing Tikki, who desperately want to get out of the stuffy handbag.  
They sat in silence, listening to the cracked clock tick. The noises had stopped, which Marinette couldn’t pinpoint as a good thing, or a horrible thing. She was afraid of what she would see when she got out of this, if she ever did.  
Chat Noir sat next to Marinette, silently contemplating. He was afraid of what Marinette would think when he transformed back into himself. He was sure she would hate him. What would she say to his being Adrien? He didn’t want to find out, but he had no choice.


	4. Musings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh, and guess what? Chat Noir is actually the guy who rejected your love! Marinette is having a great few days. Yeah right.
> 
> “Hey, it’s okay. Y-you can turn around,” he said, and she felt a hand on her shoulder. It was rough and calloused, perfect for fencing. His hair was silky gold, and his eyes a deep green, perfect for modeling. And his voice, smooth and kind, perfect for the boy of her dreams. She turned.  
>  “Adrien?”

Chat Noir’s final timer beeped, and they sat in silence, tense about what they would find.   
The black slowly faded, and Marinette looked away, afraid of what she would find when she looked back.   
“Hey, it’s okay. Y-you can turn around,” he said, and she felt a hand on her shoulder. It was rough and calloused, perfect for fencing. His hair was silky gold, and his eyes a deep green, perfect for modeling. And his voice, smooth and kind, perfect for the boy of her dreams. She turned.  
“Adrien?”  
He frowned as she backed up, scrambling to just get away. “No, Mari, wait-”  
“No. I’m done waiting. I waited for you. And you said no. I waited and waited and waited and I’m done waiting. I don’t care anymore, Adrien! I don’t care what you think!”  
He gasped, and tumbled back, as if he’d been shot. Hurt written across his face, he sat there, unable to speak, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.   
Marinette didn’t care. She wasn’t thinking about how her kitty cat and her crush were the same person, about how she had just yelled at him- she only had one thing on her mind, and that was to get out of the school bathroom and cleanse the akuma outside.  
“Tikki, transform me!” she whispered, as she unzipped her purse. Tikki flew out and zoomed into her earring, turning her into Ladybug.   
She ignored Adrien’s flabbergasted expression and used Lucky Charm, coming up with a spotted lockpick. “What am I supposed to do with this,” she wondered. As she stared at the collapsed door, she realized there was a section that was loose. She stuck the pick in it, and the whole thing came tumbling down, leaving a section open for her to crawl through.

She was able to cleanse the akuma fairly easily, without Chat Noir’s help. He was some poor soul who’s pet hamster had died, and he called himself the Furrball. He was turning citizens into hamsters- that was why it had gotten so quiet. He was laughable, really, compared to some. His akuma was his pet’s collar, and the battle was over before it had started. After using Miraculous Cleansing Light to restore everything to normal, she had rushed home and detransformed, collapsing on her bed.

“Oh, Tikki,” she muttered into her pillow, “what am I supposed to do now?”  
The kwami didn’t respond, and Marinette sighed, burying her head deeper in the soft cushion.  
“Sometimes I envy akumaized people,” she lamented. “They get to tell all of Paris how they feel, and, really, it isn’t their fault. It’s Hawkmoth’s fault. I sometimes wish I had an excuse like that, to tell Paris how I feel. But I know I can’t. Because if anyone finds out I’m Ladybug, it’s all over. Augh, I just wish I could tell Alya about this,” she gestured wildly, “thing. But she would just post it on the Ladyblog or something. I can’t talk to mom or dad, they can’t know either. And I certainly can’t talk to the boy who caused this whole mess. I- I just-”   
She looked over at Tikki, who was munching on a cookie, contemplating what her chosen one had just spewed out. “Huh. Well. You need some food, Marinette. You haven’t eaten since last night. Barely.”  
“You sound like my mom,” Marinette sighed, but got some food anyway. Suddenly, her phone rang. “Oh, it’s Alya!”   
She fumbled with the phone, eventually hitting Answer. Alya’s voice came streaming out. “Girl, where have you been, I’ve been calling you! Did you see Ladybug singlehandedly take down that akuma? Also, I wonder where Chat Noir was.” There was a pause, and Marinette held her breath. “Oh! We have a chocolate date, remember? Come over to my house.”  
Marinette laughed halfheartedly. “Thanks, Alya. I really need someone to talk to right now.” When there was an awkward pause, Marinette hurriedly corrected herself. “No, I mean it seriously! I have had the worst day, you won’t even believe.”  
She could practically hear Alya’s smile through the phone. “No problem, I’m always here for you, Marinette. I’ll get the sweets out.”  
“Okay, I’m coming over.”  
As Marinette put her shoes on, she thought about what Alya had said, 'I'm always here for you.’ She only wished that could be true. 

The girl of his dreams and his quiet crush were the same person. Adrien couldn’t believe it. No wonder Ladybug had rejected him harshly- she was still stinging from his rejection! He sighed, watching her fight the akuma from the sidelines. He hadn’t managed to get Plagg cheese yet, so he had no way to transform. How had his love life gotten so complicated, he wondered.   
“When Ladybug came into the picture,” Plagg butted in. Adrien looked at him, annoyed at the interruption of his thoughts.   
“Did I seriously say that out loud?”  
“No, I can tell what you’re thinking.”  
“Really?”  
“No, you dork.” Plagg reached up and poked him, hard.   
“Hey! Stop that.” He batted the kwami away, staring at the aftermath of the battle. “That was quick,” he remarked.  
‘Well, maybe she’s quicker without you to slow her down, have you thought of that,’ a voice in his head whispered.  
“No, of course she’s not, we’re teammates!” he thought to himself, but he didn’t say it with conviction. Was that even true anymore? She probably hated him. He sighed, and walked home, collapsing on his bed. Plagg sniffed a piece of cheese that had been fished out of the fridge.   
“This smells… sweet.”   
He whipped his head around and glared at Plagg, not in the mood to argue about cheese. “Plagg, please, just eat the camembert!” He put his head in his hands.  
Plagg backed off, mumbling something about lovesick boys and cheese.


	5. Text Messaging is Cool

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> No it's not someone pretending to be Marinette, but if it was, Adrien wouldn't realize until it was too late. Poor oblivious boy.

unknown number: we need to talk.

Adrien: Okay…

Adrien: Who are you?

Adrien: How’d you get my number?

Adrien: Are my father’s *absurd* fears of me being stalked by an inside agent for his rival company who I met at school finally coming true?

unknown number: it’s Marinette

Adrien: oh

unknown number: and Alya gave me your number.

Adrien: How does… never mind. So. Yes. We need to talk. Umm… my place?

unknown number: no.

Adrien: …?

unknown number: yes. i don’t care, wherever.

Adrien: My house, 4:30 tomorrow.

unknown number: fine. see you then.

Adrien: Oh, also, Marinette?

Adrien: Marinette?

Adrien: Aaand you’re gone. Bye :|


	6. Dancing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It feels so good to just let it all out. To tell someone how you feel, after keeping it hidden for so long. Because being Ladybug is like dancing when nobody’s watching. And being Chat Noir is like singing when there's nobody listening.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this was a bit short, and that it was a while before I wrote it- I took a bit of a hiatus, but here's the (hopefully) long-awaited conclusion! Yay!

His house was huge. It was echoing and empty, and just being inside made her feel small, but she had come inside anyway. God knows why.  
She stood in the doorway of Adrien’s room, watching him beat the single player version of Ultimate Mecha Strike 3.  
“I’m pretty good at that game, you know.”  
He looked up. “Oh, I know. We trained for the tournament together, remember?”  
“Oh… Yeah.”  
Adrien’s character died on the screen, and he sighed loudly. He shut off the game and turned around to face her.  
“So.”  
She sat down on a chair near the doorway, perched on the edge as if she was going to run at any moment. He gave her a tentative smile.  
“Marinette… I-. I’m sorry. For what happened.”  
She nodded. “Yeah. Me too.”  
“Listen, the reason I… said no… was because I was… waiting for Ladybug.”  
“But I’m not Ladybug!” she burst out. “Well, yes, I am, technically, but my personality- she’s who I am without worrying about, well, anything. No one knows your identity, so you’re free to say what you want. But when everyone is watching you, when they know where you live, who you are- I can’t be Ladybug then. I have to be Marinette. Because being Ladybug is like dancing when nobody’s watching.” She looked up at him, suddenly nervous about how he’d react.  
But he just nodded. “Yeah. I know exactly what you mean. And you can’t let anyone know, because if they know then someone will be watching. And you can’t dance like that when someone’s watching.”  
Marinette felt something wet on her cheeks and she realized she was crying. She turned around. “I’m sorry, I have to go.”  
“Marinette, wait!”  
She stopped and turned around, holding back tears. “What?”  
“Please. Please stay.”  
He handed her a controller and she smiled, brushing her tears away.  
She sat down on the couch next to him, and focused on that moment, that screen.  
And now, she could dance like nobody was watching, when she was her civilian self.  
Because she wasn’t alone anymore.  
And she knew, no matter what happened, they were still, and would always be, not friends, not lovers, but partners.


End file.
